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Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, the telecoms company founded by billionaire entrepreneur Strive Masiyiwa, has won fresh support for its plan to quit the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange after a leading brokerage said the market has repeatedly failed to reflect the company’s underlying value.
FBC Securities said Econet’s view that it has been undervalued on the ZSE is credible, pointing to years of thin trading, limited liquidity and heavy risk discounting that it said have distorted pricing for large counters. The broker argued that Econet’s share price has often tracked tradability constraints more than business fundamentals.
Masiyiwa is best known for building Econet from a scrappy challenger into a flagship brand in Zimbabwe’s mobile market, part of a broader regional story in which the group expanded telecommunications and digital services across Africa. While Masiyiwa is no longer the day to day face of the listed unit, Econet remains closely associated with his long running argument that African companies need markets that can value growth, infrastructure and cash generation fairly.
Econet announced in December 2025 that it intends to delist, telling investors that the ZSE no longer provides effective price discovery for a company of its scale. As part of the proposed exit, Econet is offering shareholders a $0.50 per share package made up of $0.17 in cash and $0.33 in shares of a new vehicle, Econet Infrastructure Company Limited, known as InfraCo.
InfraCo is intended to hold Econet’s passive infrastructure, including towers, real estate and power related assets. The company is expected to list on the Victoria Falls Stock Exchange on March 31, 2026, the same date Econet plans to delist from the ZSE. The targeted valuation for InfraCo has been put at about $1 billion.
FBC Securities said the planned structure could appeal to investors looking for hard asset exposure and more predictable cash flows. The broker said InfraCo is expected to be supported by long term lease agreements with Econet, a model designed to generate steadier revenue than a typical operating telecom business.
The brokerage cautioned, however, that infrastructure listings can still face early volatility. It urged investors to pay close attention to tenancy concentration, dividend policy, governance and liquidity, particularly if the listing mechanism limits initial free float or trading depth.
Econet’s market value has risen since the delisting plan became public, a move the broker said underscores how news flow and corporate actions can force a repricing in an illiquid market. Even so, the broader dispute remains: whether Zimbabwe’s main exchange can reliably price large companies, or whether Masiyiwa’s most famous corporate offspring is better served by a different market and a new structure.
